What sparks will the combination of DeFi and AI ignite? 10 recent popular DeFAI projects
Source: Talking Li and Talking Outside
It feels like various AI chatbots are everywhere now, and when something gradually enters a state of aesthetic fatigue, people often hope to find the next alternative topic. In a recent article from Talking Li and Talking Outside, we mentioned DeFi 3.0 and AI Agents. So what happens if we combine DeFi and AI?
Recently, I've noticed that more and more people are starting to mention the concept of DeFAI, which some also call AiFi or AgentFi. In any case, regardless of the name, this is a concept that hopes to combine DeFi and AI, attempting to simplify DeFi operations or processes through artificial intelligence, thereby bringing more potential profits.
At first glance, this seems to be a good concept and has some imaginative space, such as:
Using AI agents to solve the complexity issues of DeFi.
Gaining more profits through automated trading and yield optimization.
Enhancing trading strategies to reduce some human (emotional) errors.
Empowering existing trading bots (such as BananaGun) to create a better trading experience or more interesting token economics.
In short, DeFAI seems to effectively handle various DeFi activities, including Swap (token exchange), Farming (yield farming), Lending/Borrowing, etc., and can also achieve automated operations across multiple platforms.
Currently, if we filter through existing narratives related to AI, AI Agents, etc., we can actually identify some projects that match the DeFAI concept. Here are a few examples of projects (ranked by latest market capitalization, and none of these projects are investment advice):
The first project is Griffain (GRIFFAIN)
Griffain allows users to complete any on-chain operation using natural language instructions, not just limited to trading. We can simply understand it as an ecosystem where you can use different AI agents to accomplish various tasks, such as copying wallet transactions or even directly creating your own token (MemeCoin).
According to the latest data from Messari, the total market capitalization of DeFAI is currently less than $1 billion, and Griffain is currently in a leading position in terms of market capitalization. As shown in the figure below.
According to the CMC (CoinMarketCap) data platform, the current latest market capitalization of GRIFFAIN (the token officially launched on November 3, 2024) is $368 million, as shown in the figure below.
The second project is Hey Anon (ANON)
Hey Anon has been deployed on multiple links, and they recently just deployed on Sonic as well. This protocol is an AI-driven DeFi protocol, focusing on natural language trading interfaces, autonomous DeFi agents, and research and communication agents. Its main purpose is to simplify interactions, aggregate real-time project data, and execute complex operations through natural language instructions.
The project is said to have received sponsorship from DWFlabs (a well-known market maker in the crypto space), as shown in the figure below. However, the protocol's product is currently in internal testing and has not officially launched yet; the public beta is rumored to be open at the end of this month (January 2025).
According to the CMC data platform, the current latest market capitalization of ANON (the token officially launched on December 22, 2024) is $141 million, as shown in the figure below. This may also be influenced by the news of sponsorship from DWFlabs, coupled with Hey Anon's recent integration of Aave's lending features, which has directly reflected in the price surge, increasing nearly 8 times last week.
The third project is Mode (MODE)
Mode is an L2 based on OP Stack, with the main goal of building a DeFi economic ecosystem fully operated by AI agents. Currently, the protocol is trying to seize the opportunity of AI Agents, having built over 100 AI Agents in its ecosystem, providing various optimized farming and trading functions.
According to the CMC data platform, the current latest market capitalization of MODE (the token officially launched on May 7, 2024) is $94 million, as shown in the figure below.
The fourth project is neur (NEUR)
Neur aggregates LLM models (Language Model Large, i.e., large language models, such as the currently most popular LLM model, ChatGPT's GPT-4) and is an open-source program designed specifically for the Solana ecosystem. The product is still in the internal testing phase, allowing users to seamlessly interact with various DeFi protocols, NFTs, etc., through a smart interface.
According to the CMC data platform, the current latest market capitalization of NEUR (the token officially launched on December 23, 2024) is $47 million, as shown in the figure below.
The fifth project is Orbit (GRIFT)
Orbit can be simply understood as a DeFi companion program, where its smart agents allow users to interact with multiple protocols across different chains. It currently supports interactions with over 100 blockchains and more than 200 protocols (from EVM to Solana).
This protocol is said to be launched by the SphereOne team, which is a cross-chain crypto payment platform (there is a prominent Orbit redirect on its official homepage). As shown in the figure below.
According to the CMC data platform, the current latest market capitalization of GRIFT (the token officially launched on December 6, 2024) is $46 million, as shown in the figure below.
In addition to the five DeFAI projects listed above that are included by CMC and have relatively high market capitalizations, there are actually some related projects that are also worth paying attention to. Let's briefly list them:
ASYM: An intelligent agent focused on automated MemeCoin trading, primarily utilizing on-chain and social data to discover MemeCoin trends. Its token is officially launching on December 7, 2024, and it currently has 7,200 followers on Twitter, but is not yet listed on CMC. As shown in the figure below.
Gekko AI: This is a fair-launch trading agent created by Axal (Axal is a verifiable agent network supported by a16z and Unusual Ventures) and is integrated with Axal's Autopilot. Its token is officially launching on December 20, 2024, and it currently has 4,700 followers on Twitter, but is not yet listed on CMC. As shown in the figure below.
Cod3x: An infrastructure that combines DeFi and AI, providing no-code building tools for creating automated DeFi strategy agents. The project's token has not yet launched.
Almanak: A quantitative intelligent agent that uses TEE to protect privacy. The project's token has not yet launched, but its official website has already announced the corresponding token economics. As shown in the figure below.
WayFinder: An AI protocol launched by Parallel (a well-known card-based blockchain game project under the Echelon Prime Foundation), initially focused on various use cases in gaming environments. It has now also caught up with the trend of AI Agents, seemingly increasing support for use cases outside of gaming environments. Users can deploy their own AI agents by simply sending a text message or execute operations like Swap, Farming, and NFT minting through natural language commands, supporting chains like Ethereum, Solana, Base, etc. The project's token has not yet launched, but they have launched a staking reward program for Prime, where holders of the PRIME token will receive 40% of the PROMPT supply through caching (similar to a staking model), and this PROMPT is presumably the token name for the Wayfinder protocol.
However, it is important to remind again that the ten DeFAI projects listed above are for discussion and learning purposes only and should not be considered as any investment advice. Please be sure to take responsibility for your own wallet and DYOR.
In summary, the combination of DeFi and AI seems to be quite interesting, and many protocols in this direction are still in the testing phase, presenting both opportunities and risks. Moreover, looking at it overall, most existing projects still simplify user task execution through chat functions, such as processing user needs by inputting specific keywords, which essentially still seems to belong to the category of AI + LLM trading bots.
From a demand perspective, DeFAI seems to have some imaginative space. Whether users can accept this approach may need to be validated over time. From a speculation perspective, whether this concept can attract more community participation or people's FOMO is uncertain, but from the active participation of entities like DWFlabs, the market may indeed need to create more hotspots for ongoing speculation.
Next, we also need to see whether traditional (established) leading DeFi projects will follow this concept. If they actively engage or collaborate with related DeFAI projects, the hype is likely to rise quickly. As for how much spark can be generated in the future, we can only wait and see.
